1. Field
This invention relates to apparatus and methods for inserting objects into balloons. One embodiment of apparatus of the instant invention inflates a balloon within a chamber by the application of positive pressure internal to the balloon, and then maintains the balloon in an inflated state while the user places one or more objects into the balloon.
2. State of the Art
The ability to insert large objects into balloons provides a novel wrapping method for gift giving. Balloon wrapped objects have a unique appeal in-part because they present the "ship in a bottle" aura or mystique. The tied-off neck of a balloon suggests the small neck of a bottle, and both are seemingly too small to allow passage of the corresponding inserted object. It piques the curiosity of a recipient to see a large object inside a balloon, where the balloon orifice is so much smaller.
An early device for inserting objects into balloons used positive pressure to inflate the balloon. An object to be inserted into a balloon was placed into a box which had a large cylindrical orifice over which a balloon could be stretched. After pressurizing the balloon, the object was maneuvered into the balloon, which could then be tied closed. A rubber sleeve attachment allowed the user to manipulate the object while maintaining pressure inside the balloon. However, this device suffered from various drawbacks including controlling air leakage through the sleeve and box, as well as stretching the balloon over the cylindrical orifice without causing damage to the balloon. Additionally, the balloon was exposed during the process, potentially placing a user's face at risk from bursting balloons while manipulating objects or tieing off balloons.
A subsequent device, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,393, solved many of the difficulties of the earlier art. This new device avoids disadvantages of pressurized systems and operates by inflating the balloon inside a chamber through use of an applied vacuum pressure exterior the balloon. Leak-prone sleeves or air sealing devices are explicitly avoided exterior the balloon orifice during balloon inflation and the insertion of an object. Also, the balloon is located inside a chamber, thereby reducing likelihood of injury should the balloon burst during inflation or due to damage caused by the inserted object. Furthermore, balloon orifice stretching is greatly simplified by a multi-fingered, cam actuated, balloon stretching mechanism. However, difficulties remain with this disclosed design. For instance, excessively applied vacuum pressure could cause the chamber housing the balloon to implode, causing damage to the device. Also, access to tie off the balloon is cumbersome in the disclosed device, requiring opening and reaching through a door into the confines of an enclosure. Furthermore, the hinged access taught by the patent forces a balloon to fold or bend at the neck when removed from the inflation chamber. This bending results in uneven stretching of the balloon's neck material, and may cause shifting of the contents of a stuffed balloon. Also, a folded or bent balloon neck is more difficult to seal because rotation of the balloon is impaired.